Jeff Bezos accuses National Enquirer publisher of blackmail

Jeff Bezos has accused The National Enquirer of blackmail on Thursday, February 7, 2019, after they allegedly threatened to publish his nude photos which he sent to his mistress if he refuses to stop investigating the source of the incriminating photos.

The news comes after the tabloid reportedly accessed the Amazon CEO’s text messages last month, and revealed the affair between Bezos and former news anchor and entertainment reporter, Lauren Sanchez, which eventually led to his divorce.

Bezos revealed the alleged blackmail in a post he shared via blogging platform, Medium, on Thursday, saying that the Enquirer publisher, David Pecker who is in charge of American Media Inc (AMI), came to him and threatened to publish the photos if he refuses to put an end to his investigations into the motives behind the disastrous leak.

He also added that publication asked him and Gavin De Becker who is the security consultant in charge of the investigation, to releases a public statement saying that they had “no knowledge or basis for suggesting that AMI’s coverage was politically motivated or influenced by political forces.”

AFP reports that De Becker had recently stated during an interview
with Daily Beast “strong leads point to political motives”, adding that he would like to look into Lauren Sanchez’s brother, Micheal, as a possible suspect, as he has been vocal about his support of the US president, Donald Trump, and has possible links to his inner caucus.

Bezos also laid emphasis on AMI and David Pecker’s previous cooperation with Trump, which is not limited to briberies made to suppress negative press which is currently under investigation by Federal prosecutors. This also includes the story of a woman who claims to have had an affair with Trump.

According to Bezos’ post, the bribe including another paid to another woman, were made on the day before Trump came out as the victor of the 2016 elections.

On the grounds that these payments were made in a bid to affect the outcome of the elections, Trump is reportedly suspected of campaign finance violations which have been reported to government campaign monitors.

The Amazon boss also drew attention to Pecker’ias links to Saudi Arab, especially in the face of the suspicion that the Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman directed the murder of Post columnist, Jamal Khashoggi.

Bezos wrote in the post, “My ownership of the Washington Post is a complexifier for me. It’s unavoidable that certain powerful people who experience Washington Post news coverage will wrongly conclude I am their enemy.

“President Trump is one of those people, obvious by his many tweets. Also, The Post’s essential and unrelenting coverage of the murder of its columnist Jamal Khashoggi is undoubtedly unpopular in certain circles.”

He added in the post entitled “No thank you Mr Pecker, with copies of emails from AMI included, “Rather than capitulate to extortion and blackmail, I’ve decided to publish exactly what they sent me, despite the personal cost and embarrassment they threaten.

“Of course I don’t want personal photos published, but I also won’t participate in their well-known practice of blackmail, political favours, political attacks, and corruption. I prefer to stand up, roll this log over, and see what crawls out.”